When asking, “what careers are available with a degree in criminal justice,” students will be pleased to find that there are several jobs in different industries offered to degree holders. When many people think of criminal justice, they think of working at a courthouse or as a guard at a prison, but there are so many additional avenues open to criminal justice graduates. A criminal justice degree offers job security, the potential of future promotion, and healthy income.
Exciting Jobs Available for Criminal Justice Degree Holders
One of the true benefits of a criminal justice degree is that it allows a job seeker to look for work in many industries, unlike degrees with tighter specialization. For example, a job seeker can work in any one of the three major components of the criminal justice system. Those components include the police, the courts, or corrections.
Within each of those areas of the criminal justice system, there are multiple career opportunities within each. A criminal justice degree holder may want to work as a police officer or he might want to work in an exotic area of law enforcement such as border patrol. Graduates may also pursue work in related areas and work as a detective, bodyguard, or even for the federal government as an agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms.
A job seeker may also look for work in the courts system where employment as a bailiff other officer of the court may be of interest. Beyond the court, there are also a tremendous number of jobs available in corrections from the visceral experience of working in a county jail to the counseling-themed positions of parole officers, juvenile detention counselors, and social workers.
Getting Promotions and Career Advancement
A criminal justice degree provides a good start for students who want to continue onto law school. Although it’s possible to major in almost anything and go to law school, a criminal justice degree is a terrific choice because it offers instruction in an applicable field. Some of the best lawyers working today have direct experience with the criminal justice system and aren’t working as an outsider. Additionally, lawyers have tremendous earnings potential.
Job seekers who wish to move up the ranks within the justice system would also benefit from a criminal justice degree. Entering the police force as a recruit may be done with a high school diploma; however, promotions to sergeant, lieutenant, and further may come swifter if a police officer has a collegiate background in criminal justice.
Terrific Earnings Potential in Criminal Justice
One of the concerns for any job seeker is getting a job with a salary that’s enough to support a family or save for retirement. The average wage for a worker in the United States is $44,321.67, as of 2012. Median pay for police officers and detectives is a healthy $56,980 a year.
Not only do criminal justice majors have the opportunity for work in many industries, but finding a great paying job is also a benefit of holding this degree. One of the only problems that a job seeker might have after investigating what careers are available with a degree in criminal justice is choosing just one job.